Really?!

IMG_03251-1This morning I attended the Timberline Senior’s breakfast. It was good to sit with my friends Lynn and Becky Wickstrom. They have been friends for a number of years and spent their lives investing in the lives of children through kids crusades held across the United States and even overseas. It invited them to stop by our house and pick some of the strawberries that are ripe and ready for picking.

This afternoon, Debbie and I traveled to Denver to attend the Western Conservative Summit. It was good to arrive mid-afternoon, but Debbie had to finish up some work and I took a nap. We did enjoy getting to the Cheesecake Factory for dinner on the Sixteenth Street Mall.

BIBLE VERSE FOR TODAY….   “There is no good way to answer fools when they say something stupid. If you answer them, then you, too, will look like a fool. If you don’t answer them, they will think they are smart.”   Proverbs 26:4,5

Really?! This was my response this week when I read a Facebook post that caught my attention. It cross-referenced an article related to the horrific murders in South Carolina. The article was from Psychology Today. The author posits that the moral decay in America is a result of “anti-intellectualism.” He says of Dylan Roof, “Whatever his IQ, to some extent he is a product of a culture driven by fear and emotion, not rational thinking, and his actions reflect the paranoid mentality of one who fails to grasp basic notions of what it means to be human.”   (I’m not sure I would have comfort that a mass murder was “thinking rationally.”) He goes on and places the blame for “irrational thinking” at the feet of “fundamental” Christians. In doing so, he is not delineating any extreme theology misconstrued, but anyone who believes in the Bible. (https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/our-humanity-naturally/201506/anti-intellectualism-is-killing-america)

How do you respond to something like this? From my political experience, I am accustomed to what you say being scrutinized and when you say something that is “off” being ostracized. It is interesting that the “intellectual” community plays by different rules. As Solomon found out trying or answer a fool is either “foolish” or not answering gives them a sense self-importance.

However, I do believe the Lord is able to give us wisdom in a challenging “post-Christian” culture. We can have the wisdom to know when to respond and how and when not to. I am reminded of Peter’s words, “…in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect..” (1 Peter 3:15)